Comment by rodh257 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by rodh257 | Hacker News Reader

Many Australian universities have a 'Bachelor of Information Technology' instead of of a 'Bachelor of Computer Science'. The one I did was a 3 year degree, it still did most of the CS subjects that I've seen elsewhere, though it didn't have any compulsory Maths (I think an extra semester of Maths should be added).

I did the degree part time whilst working full time and once I was done I started the interview process for a position at Google. I was told that they don't usually hire anyone unless they have a bachelor of computer science, but that they'd make an exception seeing as I've been working (effectively had 4 years experience at that time). I ended up getting a non-grad job elsewhere even before my second phone interview, but it seems to me that if they only hire BSc students, the university system is not setup to suit them.

I've never met anyone from Queensland (my home state) that has done a BSc, its either called Bachelor of IT or Software Engineering. That doesn't mean they aren't capable of being great employees for Google.

I'm in the same situation at the moment, having just begun a Bachelor of Information Technology through RMIT and Open Universities Australia, which for international readers, is a distance education organization involving several large Australian universities. I am also working full time, although not in IT, unfortunately.

I'm not in a financial position to fund my studies myself, so I'm making use of the federal government 'FEE-HELP' system, which basically means I don't begin repaying my loan(s) until I reach a certain income threshold. I also live in a 'regional' area on the NSW Mid North Coast, and despite living within an hour of a local university, the courses and degrees I've enrolled in aren't offered in this area.

I can understand that there are most likely different factors that determine whether or not a particular degree is covered by FEE-HELP, but it's a shame that it seems like a proper CS degree is still only viable for somebody living in a large capital city, with the finances available to self-fund their studies.

As you've mentioned, a Bachelor of IT does offer certain fundamental units that you'd encounter in a CS degree, but none of the advanced maths units seem to be offered.

If the National Broadband Network actually gets finished one day, hopefully more long distance education providers might be able to offer degrees such as CS, with the aid of fast, reliable internet connectivity to help solve the locale problem.

I too completed a Bachelor of Information Technology (BIT) though I more than completed the equivalent of a Bachelor of Computer Science & Technology (BCST). BIT at my university is a BCST Advanced with Honours thrown in (a year of research where you produce a thesis on a novel topic).

I interned at Google and know many people who work there -- whilst their interview process takes forever they wouldn't mind what your degree is if they have enough ticks from the Google interviewers.

Essentially Google are just slow to trust. It's easier for them to turn down a promising candidate than remove a candidate who showed promise but couldn't live up to their potential. The best suggestion is to have a friend on the inside recommend you -- internal recommendations feature a lot more klout.

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